Birthday Surprises
by Luthiaesc
Summary: It's Naruto's birthday, but the villagers don't seem too happy about it... What have they planned for the blond Kyuubi container? And why is Sasuke suddenly so worried? All will be revealed in time... Will be updated when I've written more.


**BIRTHDAY SURPRISES**

disclaimer: I own nothing! (unfortunately) Naruto and it's characters, settings and other stuff belong to Masashi Kishimoto. I'll let you know which characters are my own. Enjoy!

summary: It's Naruto's birthday, but the villagers don't seem too happy about it... What have they planned for the blond Kyuubi container? And why is Sasuke suddenly so worried? All will be revealed in time...

Normal text

"Normal speech and writing on walls"

_Thoughts and letters_

_'Naruto to Kyuubi'_

**Kyuubi to Naruto**

It was Naruto's birthday, but, unlike most children, he hated that day. It reminded him of Kyuubi no Kitsune, the nine-tailed fox demon sealed inside him. It was the demon that made almost all of Konoha hate Naruto. He was evil, they thought, because the demon inside him had attacked the village, killing many shinobi as well as innocent villagers. The townsfolk couldn't hurt the fox, because it was sealed away, so they hurt the container instead.

In the beginning, the little blond-haired boy didn't know about the demon inside him. He didn't understand why so many people hated him, or why they tried to hurt him. But, as that was how he grew up, he sort of got used to the violence.

Naruto noticed, at a reasonably young age, that he healed quicker than anyone he knew. If he was attacked at night on his was home from the academy, by the morning, his wounds would be healed with no trace of any injuries besides the dried blood and tears. Being as young as he was, the orphan just accepted these healing abilities without question - they were a part of him. As each birthday passed, the violence towards the blond would increase, but his healing abilities, one of the advantages of being the container of the Kyuubi, couldn't keep up straight away. The weeks following Naruto's birthday were always the worst - his injuries would last longer, and be more painful than the rest of that year, and any previous year, but he didn't know why.

That particular birthday, Naruto woke with the dawn. He waited ten minutes before he slowly got out of bed, dreading what "surprise" the villagers had left him this year. Deciding it was better to find out sooner rather than later, the sleepy blond padded into his living room, watching his feet so he didn't trip over anything. He just stepped over the various papers and such strewn all over the floor. He looked ahead of his feet to make sure there wasn't anything he could trip over before he looked up at the walls of his apartment. He felt a cold hand grab his heart and twist it as he read the messages painted onto his walls.

"Die, DEMON"

"Burn in Hell, Scum"

"You should be locked up and left to die"

"You're a whore that doesn't deserve to live"

The walls of Naruto's home were covered in abusive messages. As he skimmed over them, he felt the tears building up in his eyes. _Why can't they just leave me alone?_ He thought, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. He carried on walking towards his kitchen, dreading what the angry villagers had left for him. As he stepped on a few pieces of paper, he heard a faint crackle, followed by a hissing. _What is that? _He wondered. He stopped walking and looked around.

A brief flash caught his attention, and as he whipped his head round, he caught sight of the villagers latest trap. Paper bombs. Lots of them. He looked at the front door of his home, and saw the wires crossing it, attached to the paper bombs. If he tried to open the door, he'd be blown to pieces. Naruto swallowed. This wasn't some mean prank. They actually wanted to kill him this time.

The tears broke free, and poured down the normally happy face. Feeling weak, and hated, Naruto collapsed onto the ground. Falling on his knees, he put his face in his hands and just cried. He knew this might be his last day, there was no way out of the apartment.

_**Kit, what's wrong?**_ Kyuubi had woken at last, because of his hosts' sobs. '_J-just look a-around.'_ Naruto couldn't stop crying. He was going to die, in his own home, on his birthday. He felt the fox stir, seemingly trying to sense the danger. The hissing and crackling hadn't stopped, and when Naruto looked around for the source, still crying, he felt his heart miss a beat. There was an paper bomb with an activated fuse. There were wires attached to it, snaking around the other bombs. Following the wires, the blond looked up. Even his sobs stopped as he saw another part of the trap. Kunai. Lots of them. All attached to wires on the ceiling. He glances back down at the lit fuse - it was almost finished. He was frozen to the spot in fear. There was no way he could escape, no way he would live.

_**Kit... Kit...**_ Naruto wasn't listening to the demon, he was staring at his death. _**Kit! NARUTO! MOVE!**_ The mental shout broke Naruto out of his daze. '_But where do I go? I can't get out!'_ Naruto was on his feet, waiting for Kyuubi to tell him. _**They didn't go in your room. Kit, get to-**_

It was too late. The fuse ended. The paper bombs exploded, throwing Naruto into the wall. His head hit the concrete with a sickening thud, and he slid down to the floor, his pyjamas almost gone, his skin extremely burnt. He felt the pain, but he couldn't scream. It was too great. He could hear Kyuubi calling to him, but it was growing fainter with each moment. He heard a metallic _twang_ and looked up at the ceiling.

The last thing he saw was a hundred Kunai flying through the air. He felt them hit his body, heard Kyuubi screaming his name inside his head, then he felt nothing.

Kyuubi watched from inside his vessel as the paper bombs exploded. His container hit the wall, and the ancient demon winced at the sound of Naruto's head hitting the concrete. He started shouting at the blond, telling him to get to his bedroom - the only safe room in the house - but Naruto wasn't listening... Or he couldn't hear Kyuubi.

The demon took a moment to take in Naruto's injuries, then immediately started healing them. The blond's body was completely burned, his pyjamas either burned away, or melted onto his skin, blood trickling from the back of his head from when he had hit the wall. Kyuubi was busy healing the burns when Naruto looked up. The demon followed his Kit's gaze, and felt his ancient blood run cold when he saw the Kunai. _**NARUTO! **_The boy just sat there, watching as the deadly points flew towards him. Kyuubi felt the terror in the container's heart, but he also felt Naruto's understanding that the village would be better off without him. And with that, Kyuubi put all of his will into keeping the boy alive, no matter the injuries. The Kunai hit Naruto, piercing deeply, hitting a lot of his vital points. Kyuubi screamed his name one more time, before he felt his container give up. The only thing the ancient demon could do for his Kit was keep his heart beating, and hope someone found him soon.

--(character change)--

Tsunade was reading a letter from the Kazekage, the leader of the Sand village. There was an important meeting coming up for the Kages of all the shinobi villages, and Sand and Leaf were discussing who they would send as the representative of their alliance.

_To Godaime Hokage, Tsunade,_

_I have met only a few Leaf shinobi - those in the Chuunin exams - but I can recommend a few from your village to represent the alliance of Suna and Konoha: Neji Hyuuga, Shino Aburame and Shikamaru Nara. From Suna, I can recommend Temari, and Kankuro - my siblings. If you have any other suggestions, they are welcome. _

_Yours, Gaara, Godaime Kazekage._

Tsunade finished reading the letter. Sighing, she picked up her pen and a piece of paper, and began to write a reply. Suddenly, the cup on her table cracked. She stared at it, but decided it was nothing, and carried on writing.

_To Gaara, the Kazekage of Suna,_

_I agree with your suggestions, but I find it difficult to decide which shinobi to choose. I suggest that we call a meeting so we can discuss this further._

_Yours, Tsunade, Godaime Hokage._

Putting down the pen, the busty blond folded the paper, and sealed it. She called Shizune in, and handed her the letter, telling her to have it delivered quickly. Shizune nodded once, and turned to leave, but the sound of an explosion stopped her. The dark-haired woman ran to the window, followed immediately by the Hokage. There was smoke rising from an apartment building to the south. Tsunade could hear some of the villagers cheering. _Why would they be cheering if someone got hurt? Unless-_ She gasped. There was only one person that the villagers wanted hurt. Shizune had also heard the cheers. She stared at the smoking building, looking at the surrounding area.

"Isn't that-?" A loud gasp escaped the medic-nin. She looked at Tsunade, who promptly screamed.

"ANBU!" Four ANBU Agents appeared in the room. "Let's get straight over to that fire!" They looked at her for a moment, before nodding. Tsunade ignored the door, and leapt out of the window, the ANBU following suit and surrounding her. To anyone looking, the party of five were just a blur, heading towards the plume of smoke in the distance.

As they ran over the rooftops, Tsunade hoped they weren't too late. _Hang in there, brat. I'm on my way, just hold on. _The ANBU looked at their Hokage, noting the fearful expression on her face. Glancing at them, she understood their confusion - they didn't know why she was _this _concerned about the fire. Normally she just sent a team over, not herself. The only reason she would be this worried was if-

"Naruto, hold on." They gasped silently. Naruto, the container of the Kyuubi no Kitsune. But why was Tsunade-sama so concerned about him? They were soon to find out.

The small group arrived at Naruto's apartment, and jumped through the living room window. They gasped at the destruction. The walls were black, none of the furniture was recognisable, and there were kunai everywhere. The only colour in the place was the orange of the small flames on what they could only guess was the couch, and the bright red of blood. Tsunade looked around. There was something missing. _Naruto, where are you?_ "Spread out and search. Main priority is finding Naruto!" Tsunade gave the order, and it wasn't long before she heard an ANBU shout from the direction of the bedroom.

"Lady Hokage! I found him!"

--(character change)--

Naruto felt like he was dying. The pain was unbearable, it was like he was being ripped apart. But that pain let him know he was still alive. Through the burning of his skin, he could feel the floor beneath him. He cracked open his eyes, hissing at the pain of moving. What he saw made him freeze. His apartment was destroyed. Everything was black and orange, burning. He could see the kunai sticking out of everything, and he could feel those that had hit him. He had lost everything, it was all destroyed. He felt helpless, desperate. He had wanted to live, but now, he wanted to die, to escape the pain. He had nothing left.

_**Don't think like that, Kit. And stop moving. I'm trying to heal your skin, and you're not helping.**_ The surprisingly gentle voice of the demon reached Naruto. He stopped moving, and felt his skin itching as Kyuubi healed him. He took shallow breaths, trying not to stretch his skin too much, because it hurt like hell. _**Okay, that's the best I can do for now. Can you move, Kit?**_ Naruto thought for a moment, before replying.

_'I can try. But it hurts, Kyuubi. It really hurts.' _Naruto heard Kyuubi sigh, before being told to try and get to the bedroom, or the bathroom. '_Okay. Here we go.'_ Naruto soon found that he couldn't climb to his feet - it hurt too much - so he settled for crawling and dragging himself across the floor. If he had enough energy, he would have screamed in pain, but all he could think was _Get to the bedroom. Get to the bedroom._ His black and burned skin split, and new blood flowed out, weakening Naruto further, but still he crawled, getting closer to the bedroom.

Dizzy, and in a lot of pain from the blood loss, Naruto reached the bedroom. He followed the wall, and stopped in one of the corners, almost invisible against the black of the burnt paint. _**That'll do, Kit. Relax, I'll take care of you.**_ Kyuubi tried to reassure the blond, but he wouldn't listen.

_I gotta get a bit further... Gotta move... Gotta move..._ Naruto pushed away from the wall, crying out in pain as he felt his skin tear again, and the Kunai knives move. He tried to take a deep breath, to fight off the darkness that closed in on him, but his attempt was futile. As he passed out again, he heard the voice of Kyuubi.

_**Oh, Kit. What did you do to deserve this?...**_

--(character change)--

Tsunade rushed into Naruto's bedroom, looking around for the blond. It took her a moment, and a pointing finger from the ANBU before she finally saw the Kyuubi container. He was lying on the floor, in the corner. His skin was as black as the burnt walls of the apartment, which is why it had taken a while to spot him. His eyes were closed. There was blood all around him, and his pyjamas were melted onto his skin. Tsunade counted the Kunai sticking out of the boys' body - she could only see eight, but she was only looking at one side of Naruto. A shadow flickered on the floor as Kakashi, Naruto's sensei, jumped through the window. He said no greeting, just stood there, his only visible eye wide in shock.

"What happened?" He asked, voice full of worry.

"We don't know." The Fifth Hokage had rushed to the blond's side. She saw more Kunai, sticking out of vital places on his body. Swallowing back bile, she focused her chakra and started healing him, so they could move him without hurting him more. Kakashi came over to her side, waiting to help if needed. Tsunade told him when to pull out each Kunai so she could heal the wounds immediately. With all the Kunai removed, she checked for other injuries. Almost all of Naruto's skin was burnt. Some of his organs were damaged because of the Kunai, and his hair was burned away in some places. Where his pyjamas had melted onto the skin, the material had become stuck in the flesh. Tsunade swallowed again. She looked at Kakashi and told him to pick the boy up carefully. Then she told the two ANBU by the door to help him. When Naruto was safely off the ground, they left the apartment through the window.

The other two ANBU had rushed to the hospital as soon as they had seen the blond-haired boy's injuries. They had gone to Shizune, who had prepared a room for the Kyuubi vessel immediately. She had called in the strongest medic-nins, and they were preparing a healing circle for Naruto.

They had just finished preparing when Tsunade arrived at top speed. Shizune looked at the Hokage, who was pale. Kakashi and the two ANBU carrying Naruto arrived a moment after Tsunade. Shizune almost fainted when she saw Naruto's injuries, but she gathered her senses and started giving orders. The silver haired sensei carried Naruto into the room on his own. Tsunade watched as the blond was carefully placed in the center of the room, in the middle of the healing seal. As soon as Kakashi was out of the seal, the medic-nins each made a hand sign, and started to heal Naruto.

Tsunade watched, thinking about Naruto. _Why today? Why did those hateful bastards do this today? What's so special about this particular day?_ She knew that, one day a year, the villagers tried extra hard to hurt Naruto, but she never thought it would go this far. The two ANBU approached the Godaime, awaiting orders. They knelt on one knee, heads down, waiting for the Hokage to tell them what to do. But she just asked them a question.

"What date is it today?" Tsunade was staring at Naruto in the middle of the seal. The ANBU didn't answer, confused at the question. "What date is it?" She sounded more urgent this time, so they answered.

"October the tenth, Lady Hokage." The ANBU hesitated before continuing. "It's the anniversary of the Fourth's success, the anniversary of his death." Tsunade looked at the one who had spoken, mouth open, understanding dawning on her face. She looked at Kakashi, who was standing beside her. He nodded - he knew what she was thinking, and that she was right. The Hokage looked back at the blond. Now she knew why the villagers hurt him more on this day. The ANBU agents snapped their heads as they saw a tear fall to the ground. There were tears running down Tsunade's face, and even Kakashi's visible eye was watery. Tsunade swallowed thickly.

"Oh, Naruto. This is no way to spend your birthday."

--(character change)--

Sasuke was on his way to the bridge where Team 7 met for training. It wasn't quite dawn. He could see the bridge, and saw that Sakura was already there. He was surprised. He took his usual spot on the bridge, and they waited for Naruto and Kakashi.

Kakashi was late, as usual, but not as late as he normally was. By the time the laid-back sensei had arrived, there was still no sign of Naruto, but Sasuke and Sakura didn't care. Kakashi got yelled at by Sakura for being late, then had his excuse beaten down, but he didn't really care. He was more concerned about a certain blond that never missed training. Especially on this day. Kakashi knew it was Naruto's birthday, and had planned a special training session because of that. But the blond wasn't there.

"Where's Naruto?" He asked his other two students.

"Hn." Sasuke gave his usual response. Kakashi turned to Sakura.

"Who cares? Let's get training, Kakashi-sensei!" Kakashi told her that they couldn't start until Naruto was there. "But why? He only gets in the way! He's useless!" Kakashi was about to tell her why when he heard a loud explosion. The three of them looked in the direction of the sound, and Kakashi felt his blood run cold when he recalled that Naruto lived in that direction.

"Naruto..." He murmured the name, and told Sasuke and Sakura training was cancelled. Without waiting for a response, he sped off in the direction of the blond's apartment As soon as he was out of sight, Sakura turned to Sasuke.

"Hey, Sasuke-kun. Wanna have lunch with me?" She fluttered her eyelashes at him, but just got silence. Hell would freeze over before he admitted it, but Sasuke was worried. Why was Kakashi adamant about waiting for Naruto? What was that explosion? And why did Kakashi say the blond's name before racing off?

Deciding he wanted to get away from the pink-haired girl, he ran off in the same direction as Kakashi had. Sakura stood rooted to the spot. What was up with everyone today? She just shrugged to herself, and started walking home.

Sasuke could see Kakashi just ahead. They were heading in the direction of the explosion, and smoke could be seen rising from the apparent source. Sasuke activated his Sharingan so he could follow his sensei more easily, and when a blur crossed their path about fifty metres ahead of Kakashi, Sasuke recognised the leader of the group - Tsunade. Suddenly, Kakashi shot off to the left, following the Hokage. Sasuke followed. He saw the small group lead by Tsunade jump into the smoking building through a window. Kakashi was about thirty seconds ahead of Sasuke, but Tsunade was a further two minutes ahead of the Jounin. When Kakashi sped up, Sasuke found that he couldn't match the pace, and so he fell behind. Cursing to himself, he landed on a roof-top, stopped, and watched as Kakashi entered the same building as the blond busty woman. Two and a half minutes later, Tsunade, a couple of ANBU and Kakashi leapt through the window, and sped off in the direction of the Hospital. Sasuke followed. He felt ill as he watched the group ahead. Kakashi was carrying something in his arms, with an ANBU on either side, protecting him. As they jumped onto another rooftop, Sasuke caught a glimpse of bright blond hair, stained with soot and blood. He felt a wrench in his gut, and the bile started to rise.

_That's Naruto! And he's burned almost beyond recognition. What happened to the Dobe? And why was Kakashi so... strange about him today? What is today? _Sasuke was a few minutes behind the group, and so he arrived at the Hospital just one of the ANBU said something about the Fourth Hokage's death. Kakashi glanced at the Uchiha before nodding to Tsunade. Sasuke took a step forward to ask about Naruto.

"Oh, Naruto. This is no way to spend your birthday." He heard Tsunade mutter, her voice thick with emotion. Sasuke froze.

_Birthday? It's Naruto's birthday?!_ Sasuke turned and walked over to one of the chairs lining the hallway. He sat down, cursing himself and Sakura.

_We were so mean yesterday at practice... He was talking to Kakashi-sensei, saying what he wanted, and we just assumed he was being obnoxious and rude... But you weren't, were you Dobe? You were just answering Kakashi's question... He asked you what gift you wanted... For your birthday... And now, you're hurt..._ For the first time in years, Sasuke felt a tear roll down his cheek, out of guilt and sorrow for Naruto.

"Sasuke?" He hadn't noticed Kakashi come over to him. The Uchiha looked up at his sensei, not bothering to hide the tear-tracks down his cheeks, or the tears still in his eyes. Kakashi's visible eye widened slightly at the sight of the youngest Uchiha crying. There was a small cough from behind the silver-haired Jounin, and when he moved, Sasuke saw the Hokage. She had tear-marks down her face, and her eyes were slightly red, but she was calm and composed. As their eyes met, Sasuke felt a surge of Chakra from the direction of the room containing Naruto.

"TSUNADE!" They all heard Shizune scream for the master healer. Without any hesitation, the busty blond sprinted into the room quicker than even Sasuke or Rock Lee could manage. When the woman disappeared from sight, Kakashi turned back to Sasuke. The Uchiha was still staring at the door to the room Tsunade had just entered. The Jounin watched, amazed, as more tears welled up in Sasuke's eyes, spilling over onto his ivory cheeks.

_Please don't die, Naruto, please don't die!_ Sasuke didn't know why, but he had realised in the second of eye-contact with Tsunade that he cared deeply about Naruto. He had never wanted to feel affection or have a close bond with anyone after the massacre his brother had caused, but to his surprise, being with Naruto had changed that. He didn't want to call it love, because it wasn't. But it wasn't exactly a light, passing feeling either. The image of Naruto, dead, worked it's way into his head, and before he knew it, Sasuke could feel the tears in his eyes again. His vision blurred as the tears fell, wetting his face, but he didn't make a move to wipe them away. He just let them fall. _It's not a weakness. Naruto, even after everything that's been done to you by this village, you still love everyone in it more than you should. More than anyone else ever could. It's not a weakness to love, you've proved that. It's not a weakness. _Sasuke closed his eyes briefly, feeling more tears fall from the ebony orbs. _Let them see it. It's not a weakness to love. Naruto, please stay. If not for me or Iruka, then the village. Please, Naruto, don't die._

--

TBC

reviews are very welcome, but I'll update no matter how many I get. Flames will be given to Sasuke for when he's too low on Chakra to perform Katon no Jutsus.

I'll update no matter the number of reviews (as i already said) but i would be extremely grateful if you could give me some ideas of where to go with this... I ran out of plot XD  
And I'm sure I haven't made TOO many mistakes, but I would appreciate it if someone would like to be my Beta...

Ja ne!  
Hinode-chan xXxXx


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